A device for illuminating a target is a laser light source which is used to illuminate the target. Such devices may be mounted on aircraft, ground vehicles, or handheld. One problem with known devices is that viewing a laser spot depends strongly on the scattering efficiency of the target the laser impinges upon. For long distances and uncooperative targets, the laser spot may be too faint to show up. Further, optical components for known devices are relatively bulky and require precise alignment to avoid making the laser spot unviewable. Further, such known optical components are either useful for remote, long distance targets, or for close up targets, but not both. It would be desirable to provide a single device for illuminating targets both close up and far away, which is not dependent upon the scattering efficiency of the target, and which can be decoupled from optical components used for the target.